Give Yourself a Present – Live in the Present

In the Disney movie, “The Lion King”, Simba is whining to Rafiki claiming he is a victim of things gone wrong in his life. Rafiki counsels Simba to not focus on the pain of the past because it cannot be changed. “It doesn’t matta, eets in dee pahst”, is Rafiki’s advice. Simba listens to his advice and runs off the make amends in the present moment.

The Past Can Hurt

As human beings we have the amazing ability to think about past, present and future. From early man until now, this skill has helped us survive. If primitive man saw a tiger, his experience in the past could help him determine the striped animal was a threat. Thinking of the future, he would foresee an escape plan. And in the immediate here and now moment, his brain would activate and he would run. This process ensured his survival. Continue reading “Give Yourself a Present – Live in the Present”

If I Omit My Extra Nutrisystem Meals, Can I Double Up On The Dinner?

I sometimes hear from people who want a little more flexibility with their Nutrisystem meals. A common comment would be something like: “sometimes I have a really hard day at my job and I come home and am particularly hungry that night. What if I wanted to eat two of the Nutrisystem dinners? Could I just load up on the larger meals and then skip the dessert and snack for that day? I’d rather have something more substantial. Is this possible?”

Before I attempt to answer, please know that I’m not an expert. It’s very easy to contact Nutrisystem and ask someone from the company about this topic. But here is my take. While I’m not sure that you would want to make a huge habit out of this because eating two dinners is going to take in more calories than two snacks or desserts, I don’t think it needs to be a huge deal on a particularly difficult day. And in my view, it’s certainly much better than cheating with a non diet dinner. I think that it makes sense to make small tweaks that allow you to stay on the diet from time to time instead of just going off of it and eating whatever you want. Continue reading “If I Omit My Extra Nutrisystem Meals, Can I Double Up On The Dinner?”

How To Lose Weight During The Holidays

Holidays and special events are full of great things to eat, but those great things to eat sometimes aren’t the same things that help you lose or maintain weight. It’s that age old question for all weight conscious people. How am I going to get through this next holiday without gaining weight?

Take a breath, and I don’t mean so you can get your belly into the waist of your pants! You can get through the next big day without putting on those extra pounds if you just make some easy but sensible decisions before the next big day arrives.

1.) On those holidays where candy is a major focus of the day, buy or make your own stash of sugar free candy in advance. This gives you the opportunity to enjoy the day as everyone else without feeling deprived. Be careful not to eat too much sugar free candy at one time though. Some sugar free ingredients can cause gas, bloating, or diarrhea when eaten in excess. (I look at that as a natural reminder to eat everything in moderation.)

2.) When you are invited to someone’s house for a holiday meal, offer to bring a dessert to help your hostess out or at least to have in addition to the dessert your hostess is planning. There are so many simply wonderful low carb, sugar free, or natural fruit dessert recipes around that it is easy to find a dessert you can take that will be tasty to everyone while making sure you have something special but workable in your own diet. Continue reading “How To Lose Weight During The Holidays”

Pineapple Rice Pudding

Everyone has an aunt or grandmother who makes the world’s greatest rice pudding. It’s a simple dessert with simple ingredients; milk, sugar, rice, cinnamon, and vanilla, with or without raisins, the debate rages on. It’s always served at Thanksgiving in my family. There’s something about the warmth of the cinnamon that makes it perfect for that time of year. It ignites the senses, kindling warm memories of Christmas cookies and evenings spent gathered around a fire.

This recipe brings the creamy taste of rice pudding into the summer. The coconut gives the pudding a lighter texture and exotic flavor. The pineapple adds the perfect amount of tropical sweetness. This dessert is to be eaten poolside whilst working on your tan and sipping iced tea. Play Calypso music and make use of tiny paper umbrellas for maximum enjoyment. The cinnamon and vanilla won’t even be missed.

Pineapple and Coconut Rice Pudding Continue reading “Pineapple Rice Pudding”

Diabetes Diet, What Are The 10 Best Fruits And Vegetables For Diabetic Patients

This is the question my diabetic patients always ask. Hopefully this article will enhance your knowledge about diet for a diabetic patient.

AVOID THESE FOODS

If you are a diabetic patient try to avoid following list of foods.

1-Sugar, artificial sweeteners and honey. However you may take sweetener like stevia. It is difficult to omit sugar from your diet at-once, I will recommend you to decrease sugar in your diet gradually.

2-You should stop taking sweets and chocolates. If you are in a party and want to take chocolate, then preferably try to take Continental dark chocolate with at-least 70% or more cocoa solids, and try to avoid chocolates where sugar is the first named ingredient

3-Try to avoid foods containing ingredients end in (ol) or (ose) as these are mainly different forms of carbohydrates like fructose, glucose, dextrose. Continue reading “Diabetes Diet, What Are The 10 Best Fruits And Vegetables For Diabetic Patients”

5 Cooking Methods Common To African Cuisine

Which methods of food preparation are commonly used in Africa? Here is an introduction to a few cooking methods common in African cuisine:

1. Roasting

Roasting refers to cooking food over an open fire, without water. The fire may be an open wood fireplace or a hearth, or a charcoal burner. Foods that are often roasted in Africa include meat, fish, tubers such as sweet potatoes, arrow roots, Irish potatoes and cassava, as well as some types of banana.

2. Boiling

Boiling refers to cooking food with water, without oil. Frequently, an earthen ware cooking pot may be used. Cooking utensils made of metal or other materials are also gaining in popularity. Continue reading “5 Cooking Methods Common To African Cuisine”

Hidden Stimulating Foods in Your Diet: Tyramine Reactions

Have you ever experienced intrusive insomnia even though you were really tired, or an overall anxiety when nothing is actually upsetting you? Even after you cut out coffee, stopped smoking and cut down on sugar and alcohol, these symptoms still persisted. You might not be aware of the fact that there are certain foods you may be eating that contain a mild stimulant called Tyramine and when eating larger amounts of these foods, you could be experiencing insomnia, rapid heartbeat (palpitations), an increase in blood pressure and mild to migraine headaches. This is all due to the hidden substance called Tyramine, found in a variety of foods you may eat on a daily basis.

Foods affect your mood and if you are experiencing sensations of anxiety and brain fog, it’s important to be aware of hidden stimulating substances in every day foods.

Everyone is pretty much aware of the reactions created by caffeine, alcohol and nicotine. One knows to avoid these foods if they experience anxiety since they only exacerbate symptoms. Not many are aware of the fact that this other hidden stimulant (Tyramine), found in many foods, may be eaten on a daily basis. Continue reading “Hidden Stimulating Foods in Your Diet: Tyramine Reactions”

Food Time Table For Two-Year Old Baby

Two years is an important milestone when it comes to you little one’s eating habits and the food they consume. At the age of two years, your baby needs a lot of nutrients in his body and milk is not enough to cater to the needs of their growing bodies. So, while it is important to always feed them healthy baby food, baby food for 2 years old is an especially critical topic. In fact, at this age, your child outgrows food and should be eating three major meals a day along with one or two snacks.

They can eat everything that you are eating, but obviously their food shouldn’t be as spicy, if at all. It is important to prepare food for 2 years old and follow a set time table for your toddler. To help ease the process of putting one together, you can refer to the following pointers for a 2 years baby food time table. But remember to also follow your baby’s cues and adapt their good according to their tastes and preferences.

Perfect food for 2 years old early in the morning: Continue reading “Food Time Table For Two-Year Old Baby”

All You Need to Know About Cakes

It is a known fact that all the best cakes in the world also qualify to be as the best desserts in the world. There is no one on this planet who doesn’t have a liking for a hot and a delicious cake. It doesn’t matter what side you are on in the debate of cake vs pie, but you will obviously admit that any good slice of cake can be one of the most finest of pleasures in your life. The list and choice related to cakes is so huge that there always arises a confusion as to which cake to choose. Is it the classic chocolate cake or the colorful strawberry cake? All these can prove to be very difficult decisions that we take in our life.

The different types of cakes

As mentioned above, there are so many cakes for you to choose from. These include chocolate cakes, cheesecakes, ice cream cakes, carrot cake, and molten chocolate cake. This list combines to make a very delicious list and a one that can never be avoided no matter what. There are so many bakeries and kuchen making places these days and this has caused a lot of furor as far as the different types of cakes is concerned.

– Avocado cake – This is a cake that is prepared by using Avocado. Continue reading “All You Need to Know About Cakes”

Great Convection Oven Recipes – Classic Cream Puffs

If you want good pastry made right, here is a great convection oven recipe. If you want, the cream puffs can be prepared up to 12 hours before the filling. You can just freeze them to store longer, just make sure that they are wrapped airtight. To cook the puffs in this recipe, just place them thawed on a baking sheet. Make sure they’re placed slightly apart and bake for 5-8 minutes on a 400 degree oven.

This recipe serves 10 people

Ingredients for this convection oven recipe are:

Cream Puff Dough

Filling (you can choose any of these fillings):

Continue reading “Great Convection Oven Recipes – Classic Cream Puffs”